Zack Sparrow – Calypso's Fury
by sol invictus
Summary: Zack rides the waves in search of gold and adventure. Another installment of my Sleeping Superhero series where Zack dreams grand dreams of adventure.
1. Chapter 1

_Another story in my Slumbering Superhero series where Zack dreams of grand adventures. As usual, I don't own TSL. Alas. On with the show!_

"Wow! That movie was _awesome_!" Zack yelled as they left the theater. They'd just finished seeing the new _Pirates of the Caribbean_ movie and the twins were dueling in the parking lot as Carey walked a few safe steps behind them.

"I know!" Cody said as he parried Zack's invisible thrust and gave one of his own.

"A pirate's life for me," Carey said softly as she imagined herself drinking rum with Jack and Will on some secluded Caribbean beach. She watched her boys sword fight as they made their way to the bus stop. She already knew that the rest of Sunday would be filled with cries of _Yarr!_ and _Shiver me timbers! _but that was okay. Boys would be boys.

Monday rolled around and Carey was sitting at the table eating her breakfast while the boys still slept. She wasn't eating by herself though – it wasn't only the boys who'd taken things from the movie. Captain Jack Sparrow was sitting at her side and they were eating apples together.

"Mom, can we go to the library today?" Jack asked her and the fantasy ground to a halt.

"Sure, Cody. We can do that," she said without looking up from her bowl of Cheerios.

"I'm not Cody." Carey whipped her head around and saw her other son standing before her. She wiped her eyes just in case there was a bit of warm white sand in her eyes.

"No, you're not." She turned back to her bowl for a split second before looking back at Zack. "Did you say you want to go to the library?" A grin split her face nearly in half.

"Yes, Mom," Zack told her with a bit of sarcasm in his voice. "Har har. So can we go now?"

"You can go ahead now if you want. I'm sure Cody will go with you."

"Well, there's a problem. I don't have a library card so you have to go too." Carey snorted and sprayed her mouthful back into the bowl.

"Okay, honey, let me finish eating and get ready," she told him as she wiped her mouth. "You might want to grab a shower because I won't be riding the bus with a boy who smells like he's been at sea for two months." She looked past Zack and into the boys' bedroom and saw Cody still sleeping. "And wake your brother up while you're at it."

Zack scampered off and Carey finished up. This was obviously going to be an odd day since not only was Zack up before his brother but he wanted to go to the library. _I should probably buy a lottery ticket, _she thought to herself with a laugh as she placed her bowl in the sink.

The trip to the library was rather uneventful even with Cody's jabs. "These things on the shelves with the hard covers are called books, Zack," or "Careful, Zack...some of those have words other than _Pow!_ or _Smash! _or colorful pictures of girls in spandex with, well, amazingly big stuff." Those earned Cody a few return jabs in the arm but Zack pretty much ignored him once he found where the books on pirates were.

The trip home was slightly more eventful as the three of them discovered that Zack cannot read on the bus without suffering major motion sickness.

A short while later Cody was on one end of the couch and Zack was on the other with a bowl of popcorn between them. Both boys had books open and were avidly reading. Cody looked up from his book every now and then to make sure that Zack was still alive since he'd never seen him this still or quiet for so long before. Once his curiosity was satisfied he'd go back to his book and enjoy the silence.

Eventually Cody had had enough for the time being and closed his book and left to do something else but Zack still didn't move. He was making steady progress and he wasn't to be denied. More time passed and Cody left to go hang out in the game room for a while and Zack turned down the invitation to go with him.

Morning had moved on into mid-afternoon and Zack began to feel a bit drowsy. He still fought on a little longer before he began to doze, his eyes closing for longer and longer periods before they didn't open again. The book fell against his chest and his hands crossed over it as he fell headlong into a deep sleep.

Zack stood at the helm with the wind raging fierce all around him. The large wheel fought with him as he tried to keep his course as the rain crashed down upon the boat nearly sideways. The storm was as huge as it was violent and it was all he could do to keep the ship, his ship, from being swamped by the huge waves.

Zack fought on as the crew battled to keep the sails fully furled. It couldn't be that much longer until they were out of the storm so he only had to keep to the southwest. _Easier said than done_, he thought to himself as the ship was nearly broadsided by a monstrous wave. He slipped to the side, nearly going down and most likely into the deep, but saved himself with a last second grab on the wheel.

"Keep her trimmed, boys!" He yelled, doubtful his voice would carry above the booming of the waves and the howling of the wind. Zack pulled his hat a bit tighter over his head and righted himself. "We'd better make it through this storm because I didn't go through all the trouble of capturing that Spanish galleon for nothing!" he yelled into the wind, his ship moaning and creaking against the pounding in response

Their hold was full of ill-gotten gains and the crew had every intention of spending every last coin that, unless they got out of this storm quickly, would be spent on repairing his ship. They'd not take kindly to that so it was up to him to get the _Queen Carey's Revenge _out of this hurricane and into safer waters before it was battered to pieces.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they seemed to be entering calmer seas; the winds began to decrease from a gale to a strong breeze and the waves began to lessen. "We're almost out, mates!" Zack yelled to the brave crewmen still battling with the riggings. A muffled cheer answered him. His men were just as exhausted as he was and he knew it. Zack had to bring the _QCR _into port or at least a sheltered cove as soon as possible.

The sun was just beginning to set when they finally left the storm for good. Crystal blue waters reflected the beauty of a Caribbean sunset that was unlike anything else on earth. Against the dying light lay a tiny speck of land and it was there that Zack pointed the bow of the ship. He hoped they'd make it by nightfall and then his crew could have their first moment's rest since they encountered the storm nearly two days ago.

They pulled into the shallow waters of some small spit of land and dropped anchor. "Have a good rest, mates. We'll tidy up the ship in the morning and make for port." Zack pulled his hat off and set it on the wheel, watching with disinterest as the water dripped off the lowest corner. He then pulled the bandanna from his head and wrung it out. To finish everything, he whipped his head side to side, flinging water from his dreadlocks everywhere. "Sweet dreams, mates," he said as he retired to his quarters for the night.

The morning light found a few rips in the sails but no other major problems. Once they were repaired they weighed anchor and were on their way. According to his navigator's estimate, Nassau was less than a day's sail away. It wasn't Tortuga, or for that matter Port Royal, but it was very close, very pirate friendly, and very close.

They rode into Nassau around mid afternoon and the cheer given by the crew after they spotted the trees and buildings would make one think that they hadn't seen civilization in years instead of three weeks. The sails were stowed and the boat securely tied to the dock before Zack gave the crew permission to go ashore. "Have yourselves a blast, mates, you've earned it. From the sacking of Martinique to the capture of that galleon, I can't think of a better crew to divvy up plunder with." They cheered him again and made haste for town, their pockets nearly overflowing with pieces of eight.

He followed them at a much more leisurely pace. He'd been here many times before but this was most of the crew's first deep water voyage and first stop in an exotic port of call like Nassau. He bowed deeply to a rather astonishingly beautiful woman as she exited a small shop and nearly walked directly into a post after he failed to take his eyes off of her. "Easy, Zack," he said to himself as he straightened his hat, "there's plenty of time to find her later."

A few minutes' walk took him to the best house in all of Nassau, one of the illest of the ill-reputes in all of the Caribbean. He could hear the yells and laughs and bawdy songs of scores of sailors forgetting about their trials at sea with the help of more than a few stiff drinks before he even pushed the door open.

"Aaaah...Home sweet home," he said quietly as he stepped inside.

_I've had the idea to do a pirate-themed story for a while now and seeing PotC:DMC only made it burn ever hotter in my brain. I'm a huge history nerd and this is one of my favorite periods of history so I couldn't wait any longer. First things first...even though Disney usually can't find any facts for their movies with two hands and a flashlight, they didn't do too bad a job on this one. Port Royal and Tortuga are real places and the majority of the 'pirate life' they show is legit. Zack's ship,_ Queen Carey's Revenge_, is based off Blackbeard's_ Queen Anne's Revenge_. I think that's all the notes I need to make for now. More will be coming shortly!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Still don't own TSL. Nope._

Zack took two steps inside the building and couldn't help but grin as he took in all the goings-on. To his left was a table of some of his crew busily drinking up their profits on mugs of ale and rum. To his right, and he ducked just in time to dodge a chair flying in from that direction, was a rather drunken brawl. Vicious battle cries came from somewhere in the cloud of swinging fists but Zack ignored them. He had better things to do at the moment and nearly all of them involved sitting himself in front of the bar wench and staring at her as he drank.

"Maddie, my pretty Maddie," Zack said as he sat down across from her, "how have you been?" She had her back to him as she was filling a handful of mugs from a large barrel but she jumped and turned around.

"Zack Sparrow!" she said with a bit of sarcasm in her voice. "I was wondering when you'd drag yourself back to this place. She slid a mug to him and smirked as it sloshed over on his hands. He shook them off and tipped the mug to her before taking a sip.

"I knew you'd miss me, love." He gave her his brightest smile that was utterly not returned.

"If you mean _miss _as in _I shot at you but missed,_ you're right. If you meant it any other way, no."

"So you did miss me after all," Zack said as he took a drink. Maddie sighed at him and turned back around to finish filling the mugs. "So what's the news, Maddie?"

She spun back around once she was finished and slid them further down the bar. "Just how long have you been gone, Zack Sparrow?"

"We've been at sea for nearly a month."

"Ah, well, you've missed quite a bit then." She continued, rattling on about all sorts of incredibly boring things while Zack slowly drank his grog. Zack nodded at the appropriate places while he thought of things many times more interesting. "And there's a rumor that your brother is back in the Caribbean again."

"What?" Zack spat out a mouthful of grog.

"There's a rumor..."

"When did you hear this?" Zack interrupted.

"A couple of English sailors were in here, oh, a few days ago, three or four maybe, and they were rather drunk and talking too loudly for me to not hear."

"What else did they say about him, Maddie?" Zack looked at her earnestly. She nearly told him that she didn't know anything else but the look on her face compelled her.

"The sailors said that they had heard he was sailing on the _Reprisal_."

"So he's..."

"Yes, Zack Sparrow."

"That's very interesting Maddie. Very interesting." Zack intently studied the inside of his mug for the next few minutes.

A few drinks later Zack bid Maddie a very fond adieu and left the tavern. He returned to the _Queen Carey's Revenge_ and retired to his quarters after having the local deckhands restock his ship. He had a few things to think about and there was no better time than while the rest of his crew were out enjoying themselves.

By the time his boys began stumbling back to the ship for the night he was ready to move on. As much as he loved seedy little ports like Nassau, there were bigger and better places along the major shipping lanes. Not to mention more treasure for the taking. Truth be told, Zack had been cursing the storm for driving him this far north but the information from Maddie made it more than worth his while. They left port the next morning with the tide and set sail south with strong winds at their back.

They were a few hours out of Nassau when a cry came down from the crow's nest. "Ship on the horizon, Captain Sparrow!" All attention on the deck immediately shifted to a dark smudge many miles away.

"Very good. Make for the ship, boys. We might have an early target in our hands." A wave of cheers rippled through the deckhands as they slowly approached the ship. "Load and man cannons!" Zack yelled out as he made his way to the wheel. The closer they got to the ship the more apparent it became that it wasn't moving.

"There's a reef, sir!" Came a call from the crow's nest. Zack nodded and slowly steered the boat closer, taking care to stay far enough away so as to avoid hitting part of whatever reef the other ship had run aground on. As they dropped anchor the only movement that could be seen on deck was the light fluttering of a torn flag.

The boat had obviously seen better days and it almost brought a tear to Zack's eye. Huge holes had been blasted out of the side of the vessel, obviously scars from a fierce battle. The sails had been ripped to pieces, either from more cannon fire or from the recent storm and the foremast had fallen to the deck.. "Poor girl," Zack said as he put both hands on the railing and gazed across at her.

"She looks deserted, Captain," a small voice to his left whispered.

"Aye, she does." Zack took his spyglass and ran it across the deck one final time. "Still though, swords drawn as we gain the deck." An ambush, however unlikely, was still possible. "Lower the boats!"

Three small rowboats were dropped into the water and were quickly filled with pirates ready to plunder. Captain Zack took a spot in the last boat and couldn't keep from tightly gripping the butt of the pistol in his belt. It was too quiet for his liking and it was making him nervous.

He was the last to climb aboard the boat, the _Wraith_, according to the white lettering on her forecastle, and he let his eyes roam across the deck. His expert eyes told him that the damage to the sails was definitely from the storm and not cannon fire. "Poor girl," he said again as he stepped around piles of fallen rigging.

_What sort of fool's errand was this ship on to continue in what had to have been the heart of the storm? _he wondered. Any smart captain would have taken his sails in and tried to ride it out instead of sailing through it. Zack grinned as he thought this, quickly deciding that he'd rather be a lucky captain than a smart captain any day. Then again they'd only been caught on the outskirts of the storm while this boat had obviously seen much worse.

"She seems empty, Captain," one of his crew called from somewhere on the ship.

"Let's see what they've left for us, boys!" He said and the crew dispersed to begin searching for treasure. He made his way to the captain's quarters while the majority of his boys went belowdecks. Aside from everything being slightly damp the room looked as if everything was perfectly normal; no signs of a hasty exit, no signs of a struggle, nothing. "Very interesting," Zack said as he started rifling though the stacks of papers on the worn desk.

"There's barrel upon barrel of gunpowder in the aft hold, Captain. Not that much else. Smyth says he came across a few chests in the forward hold." Zack jumped slightly and turned toward the door to see Hopkins, his first mate, standing with a hand on each side of the door frame. "What happened here, Captain? No pirate worth his salt would leave treasure behind."

"I don't know yet, Hopkins. I don't know." Zack gathered the papers together and stuffed them in his coat. Something about this boat suddenly unnerved him and he decided that he'd give them a closer look once they were back on board their own ship and had put some miles between this one. "Get everything aboard our ship and let's be done with this." Hopkins nodded and left, barking orders as he made his way back to the holds.

An hour later they were back underway and Zack set all the papers on his own desk and shifted them around. A letter of marque caught his interest. He'd figured the _Wraith_ for a pirate vessel but the letter confirmed it as a privateer. "And what's this?" Zack said as he pulled a stained piece of parchment from the stack. "A map?" Zack leaned back in his chair and kicked his boots up onto the desk and studied the map.

His Spanish wasn't the best, really only good enough to either order the crew of a galleon to surrender or order another round for his men, but he knew who to call upon. "Hopkins!" He bellowed from the desk and waited.

"Yes, Captain?" A towheaded face peaked around the door and looked expectantly at him.

"I need you to read something for me."

"Alright, Captain." He walked up and took the page from Zack. "Is that...blood?" Hopkins pointed to dark smudges that covered nearly one quarter of the page and what could be nothing other than a fingerprint just left of center.

"Aye, I believe it is." Zack saw Hopkins' eyes waver slightly. "Don't see the blood, lad, just see the writing below the map. What does it say?"

"It says, um...It's directions to a treasure, sir. Calypso's treasure. Who's Calypso, Captain Sparrow?"

"Some old sea dogs claim she's the goddess of the oceans or boats or whatever they can think of."

"So she's not real?"

"That depends on who you ask, Hopkins. I can tell you one thing that is real about her. Any idea what that is?"

"No sir. What?"

"That sailors have made offerings of gold and other shiny things to gods for about as long as boats have sailed the seas. So, if we happen to follow this map..." he trailed off, wanting Hopkins to finish the thought on his own.

"...we'll find a huge stash of treasure, right Captain?"

"Exactly."

"So when do we start looking for it?"

"As soon as you translate the rest of the map, Hopkins," Zack said and Hopkins leaned down beside him and started his translation.

_This would have been up sooner but my computer decided to completely die and take everything with it as it crashed and burned. And don't worry, I know it's not the most exciting thing right now but trust me, it's coming. Cody'll show up next time, I promise._

_I think the only note I need to make here is about the difference between pirates and privateers. A pirate would attack anyone and everyone and keep all the spoils while a privateer worked for a particular nation (Britain, for example) and only raided ships sailing under a certain flag (Spain, for example). They split the spoils with the government that employed them._

_Oh, and a 'letter of marque' was the document granting the right to privateer. A privateer's license if you will!_


	3. Chapter 3

Zack had been in his cabin with Hopkins translating the map when he felt the ship jerk hard to port and raced to the deck to see exactly who had just run them aground. "Ship right off the bow, Captain!" the helmsman yelled, pointing to his right. Zack could have nearly spit on the other ship from where it was.

"She just came out of a squall, Captain," a deckhand said as he ran up to the wheel, "and was nearly on us."

Zack pulled his spyglass from his coat and peered across the short distance. He watched as men with muskets approached the railing and felt his blood run cold as he saw a Spanish flag being hoisted. "Pirate hunter," he said as he drew his cutlass. "Load the guns!" The deck became a whirl of action as men raced belowdecks to man the cannons. "Hopkins! The wheel," he said to his most trusted crewmate, "get us in firing position as quickly as possible." Pirate hunters weren't generally patient people and they'd be more than happy to sink Zack's ship as quickly as possible.

"Fire fire fire!" Zack yelled as soon as Hopkins had him in position, pointing his sword at the vessel off their starboard bow. He felt the deck shake beneath his feet as each cannon on that side of the ship erupted in flame and smoke, fifteen cannonballs ripping the air and racing across the short distance between the two ships. Zack cheered as nearly half of the volley struck home and sent men and shattered planks flying into the air. "Reload!"

"Do you think we can outrun them, sir?" Hopkins asked him as he steered the ship hard to port to throw off the aim of the expected return volley.

"Doubtful, but if we can get far enough ahead of them by sunset we might have a chance." Left unsaid in the exchange was any talk of surrender. Not a soul on the _Queen Carey's Revenge _had any plan on spending the next forty years of their lives rotting away in some Spanish prison. They'd all go down with the ship before that happened; such was the life of a pirate.

The pirate hunter returned fire but all the shot landed wide. "Fire!" Zack screamed again. The two ships traded blows for the next half hour as the sun slowly set. Zack's ship had escaped major damage but after the initial volley the majority of his shot missed as well.

"Load starboard and port guns," he said and the message was relayed below. "Hopkins, as soon as we fire I want this boat swung around so we can get them with the other guns. If this doesn't work we'll set to outrun them in the night." Hopkins nodded and wiped the sweat from his brow. Zack put a hand on his shoulder as he noticed the lad shaking. "We're almost out of this." Hopkins nodded as bravely as he could.

The starboard guns belched their flame and fury and the wheel was cut less than a second later and everyone on deck grabbed onto something as the ship groaned against the hard turn. "Ready...ready...FIRE!" he yelled as they'd lined up for the perfect broadside. The other fifteen guns opened up and sent destruction at the pirate hunter.

A small explosion shook the hunter and flames burst into life all across the deck. Zack was about to congratulate his men on a wonderful job when another, much more powerful, explosion ripped the ship in two. Zack's mouth hung open as a fireball shot hundreds of feet into the air. No one on deck uttered a word as pieces of the boat began to rain back down onto the sea.

"Direct hit on their powder magazine, Captain?" Hopkins asked him finally.

"I think so, mate, I think so."

They sailed on for a while, everyone too amped on adrenaline to settle down for the evening. Eventually Zack made his way back to his quarters with Hopkins and they finished their work on the map.

"So that's it? You're sure?" he asked Hopkins.

"Aye, sir."

"Wonderful," Zack said with more than a bit of sarcasm.

"It is really close to the Main, isn't it, Captain?"

"Too close for my likings, Hopkins."

"We aren't going after it?"

"Oh no, we're certainly going after the treasure, Hopkins. If it's anything like I'm imagining, we can find this treasure of Calypso and live out the rest of our time without ever having to lift a finger again." The two shared a grin. "Think of it...Rum by the boatload, the finest food money can buy...all ours for the taking." He sighed. "I just wish it wasn't so close to where so many people want to hang me."

"Where should I set course to, Captain Sparrow?" Hopkins asked after a thoughtful moment. Going that close to the mouth of the beast was dangerous but Captain Sparrow had never steered them wrong before.

"Port Royal first, Hopkins. We'll take on supplies there and then set sail for Panama."

"Very good, sir. I'll see to it myself before I turn in." He made to leave but stopped in the doorway. "Perhaps we should paint the ship while we're in port? Change the sails? Just in case we run across any of our _friends?_"

"Good lad, Hopkins," Zack said as he stood up. "We'll do that." Hopkins left, gently closing the door behind him, and Zack stretched his arms over his head. It had been a long and draining day and he was nearing the point of exhaustion.

"The Spanish Main," he said to himself as he took his jacket off and hung it on the back of the chair. "Of all the places...why not anywhere else _but _there?" He forced a grin onto his face. "I'm Captain Zack Sparrow, I can walk in there, dazzle the natives, find the treasure, and get back out before they even know I'm in the neighborhood. And I'll be rich."

Thoughts of his brother suddenly crowded into his happy reverie. What was he doing back here, anyway? Hadn't he taken a post back in England with the King or something? Zack sighed as he kicked his boots off. He'd have to find Cody once he retrieved that treasure and have a long talk with him, that was for certain. He raised the glass on the oil lamps and blew the flames out. Sleep was upon him moments after he laid down for the night and dreams of riches and barrels of rum and incredible sunsets danced through his sleeping mind.

A red and white flag fluttered in the dim light as the ship approached Jamaica. Port Royal was still at least a hundred and fifty miles off but the crew already imagined that they could see the lights of the city in the distance. It had been a long cruise, first from England with a convoy of troop ships to reinforce the colony of Barbados and then a pitched battle with two French frigates off the coast of Martinique, and they were in bad need of supplies and repairs. They'd sent the two French ships to the bottom but took a harsh beating of their own.

The young captain stood on the bow and stared off into the distance. The stress of the voyage and his orders creased his youthful face and he exhaled loudly into the breeze. He was lost in thought and didn't notice as his lieutenant came up behind him.

"Commodore Martin, you should get some rest. I think the ship will still be in one piece if you grab a few hours sleep. I'll wake you at sun up."

"I will shortly, thanks." He turned and watched the man walk back to his post before turning back to the water. He took his hat off and let the wind blow through his hair.

"Zack, wherever you are, please stay out of my way," he said to the waves, "I don't want to do this." Cody gave the choppy sea one final glance and made his way across the deck of the ship. He returned the salutes from his men and climbed the stairs to his cabin.

He stripped his uniform off and hung it neatly on the pegs before sitting at his desk. His eyes were immediately drawn to a folded piece of parchment that he'd read and reread a hundred times since he'd broken the wax seal back in London. He knew it by heart but couldn't help but read it again in hopes that it would have changed some way, no longer saying what made his heart heavy.

_Commodore Martin, _it read, _you are hereby ordered,_ _as part of the recent peace treaty with Spain, to arrest Zack Sparrow and his crew and return them to England to stand trial for countless acts of piracy against the vessels of Imperial Spain. In the event that he resists, the use of deadly force is authorized. Godspeed, Commodore._

_Lord Theodore Wyscombe,_

_12 May, 1671._


	4. Chapter 4

**--Cody--**

They'd arrived in Port Royal shortly after dawn and immediately Cody had seen to getting the ship repaired and provisioned. Once he was sure everything was going according to plan he set off for the large house that stood sentry over the port. He was greeted by an ancient butler and escorted to a lavishly decorated parlor and was told that the governor would be with him shortly. Cody walked around the room and admired some of the more interesting pieces of decor.

Cody spent the next few hours in the company of the governor entertaining him with stories of warfare and the latest news from England. It was tiresome since the governor contributed little to the conversation aside from the occasional nod or 'yes yes' in his overly eager voice.

The only bright spot of the morning was when the governor finally announced that he had affairs to attend to and that, as sorry as he was, he had to cut their meeting short. They both rose to their feet and Cody was escorted out and found the sun to be nearly almost directly overhead. He frowned as he realized he'd lost nearly four hours to the formalities of his post. Cody went down the curving steps to the road quickly, intent on getting back on his schedule.

There were a thousand things that needed to be done before they could put to sea again. The ship was in obvious disrepair, they were painfully low on gunpowder and shot, the sails needed mending...the list went on and on. "And I've been playing schoolmarm to a bored old man," Cody said with disgust. He took off for the docks with a purposeful step.

**--Zack--**

The trees of Port Royal loomed ever closer as Zack Sparrow and the _Queen Carey's Revenge_ rode the waves. The crew were getting antsy for they all knew that this might be their last stop in anything like a major port for a while and they wanted to make the most of it. Port Royal was known for many things, not many of them good things, so naturally it was a haven for pirates.

"Looks like her main docks are full, Cap'n Sparrow," a deckhand said to him as he looked at the nearly full port city. "We'll have to settle for one of the smaller berths further to the west."

Zack grumbled. Having to dock over there would delay his plans for sure. He'd been hoping to ride in, resupply, and make nice with the Governor before he left. Hopefully in a few hours. But this, this huge inconvenience, would probably make his stay last for at least a day. "Aye, make for them."

Half an hour later they were tied up to the dock and Zack sent Hopkins to see about resupplying the boat as quickly as possible. Zack set about heading into town to see if he couldn't resupply himself with the latest news with a little visit to the local tavern since pirates were notorious for talking a blue streak once a bit of alcohol had greased their tongues.

Zack took a seat at a table in the tavern after he'd obtained a mug of ale from the bar wench and watched the comings and goings. It was still kind of early in the day, barely past noon, so the place wasn't as full or as rowdy as it would be when the sun finally came down and the pirates all came to start drinking.

"Well curse my bones if it isn't Captain Zack Sparrow," a voice said from close by. Zack swung around to see another pirate standing at the head of his table with a mug in his one visible hand.

"That would be me," Zack said. "I don't think we have had the pleasure of being introduced." Zack sat forward in his chair a bit, tensing his muscles for anything that might happen to come.

"I'm no one special, mate. I'm just here to collect."

"And just what might we be collecting, brother pirate?" Zack's intuition told him that the likelihood of this situation coming to a good end was very low.

"You, mate." Spite dripped from the pirate's words. "There's a bounty on your head and I'm here to collect it." He grinned. "I'm going to bring you in and then spend the rest of 'me days drinking the sun down."

"How much am I worth, then?" Zack asked as he tried to quickly size up the situation. Few of the other drinkers were paying much attention since they were both talking in low voices and that was a plus. The door was about twenty paces from him with only one chair in the way. Good.

The pirate grinned at him. "You, my fine friend, are worth five thousand doubloons to the Spanish." He brought his other hand from behind his back and leveled a pistol at Zack. "Now, if you please, keep your hands where I can see them."

This was a bad turn of events for Zack. He took another swallow from his mug and tensed even further. "Well, let's go collect that bounty then, mate," he said as he stood up shakily.

"That's right, come on around the table, Captain Sparrow." Zack took an unsteady step and nearly fell against the table as he put his acting abilities to the test. "Been drinkin' already, Captain?" The pirate smirked.

"A little." Zack took another step toward the pirate and nearly fell again, his fingers tightening around the mug's handle. Here we go...

The pirate reached out to grab his jacket but Zack grabbed him instead, swinging the metal mug as hard as he could in a wide arc. He had time to notice the man's eyes widen in shock before he heard a resounding _thok _as he connected with the pirate's head. The shocked eyes rolled back in his head as he fell to the ground in a heap.

"Well, that makes for an interesting day," he said to himself and anyone else who might have been listening. Zack dusted himself off and made his way to the door. He spared a glance back into the tavern to make sure there wasn't anyone else coming after him and, satisfied that there wasn't, tipped his hat to the barkeep and left.

"Time to get back to the ship," he said to himself. If one pirate on this little island knew about the bounty, chances were pretty good that others did too. They'd have to resupply somewhere else. Zack set off toward the docks at a measured pace, his frown deepening with each step.

He had just rounded one of the last corners before he'd be on the dock road when he heard a very familiar voice call out to him.

**--Cody--**

Cody had been making a list of things that needed to be finished before they left when he saw a figure turn onto his street. He looked away for a moment before he did a double take. Zack? No, it wasn't possible. How could he be here? Now? His mind thought back to the parchment sitting on the desk in his cabin. He frowned and pulled his pistol. Orders superseded blood.

"Zachary Martin," he shouted, "stop!"

**--Zack--**

Zack froze when he heard his name called. Cody? Absolutely impossible. He turned slowly and saw his brother approaching him, gun drawn, from about ten yards away. This was apparently the day for impossibilities, he decided. Neither boy spoke as Cody drew nearer.

"Of all the people I expected to run into here today, Captain Cody, you are the last."

"It's Commodore now, Zack," Cody corrected him with a bit of pride in his voice.

"Oh, good show, Commodore," Zack said with a grin.

"Put your hands up, Zack."

Zack complied, his grin never leaving his face. "I hate to burst your bubble but that isn't the first gun I've had pointed at me today, brother."

"What do you mean?"

"Long story, really, better to be told with a mug of brandy and a warm fire." Zack looked into his brother's face, looking for a clue. "So what are you going to do with me now that you have me? Turn me over to the Spanish?"

"Not hardly. I was sent back here to arrest you and return you to England to stand trial for piracy."

"I guess you'll just have to shoot me then."

"What?"

"I'm not going back to England, mate. I have work to do down here. Treasure to find, you see."

"I'm sorry, Zack," Cody told him again.

"Pull the trigger, Cody."

Cody's hand wavered momentarily and that little instant was all Zack needed. He took the step to close the distance and tackled his brother. They wrestled around on the ground for control of the gun, gouging, punching, kicking, and biting, until it finally ended up in Zack's hand.

They both got to their feet and Zack pointed the gun at his brother. Cody raised his hands this time and swallowed hard. Zack was struck by a sudden bout of indecision. If he were to spare Cody the whole of the Royal Navy would likely be on his tail in hours but he just couldn't shoot his brother. Someone else, sure. He wouldn't even have to think about it. But not Cody.

Zack dropped the gun slightly and then resteadied it, pulling the hammer back. "I'm sorry Cody." Cody nodded his head slowly and closed his eyes. "I'm ever so sorry." Zack spun the gun around in his hand so that he was holding it by the barrel and smacked his brother in the head. "Not the first time I'm knocked a guy out like that today, either," he said as Cody was falling.

He looked at his brother's form for a moment before he came to a conclusion. He couldn't leave Cody here because he'd eventually come to and tell everyone what happened. And he couldn't shoot him, well, not that he didn't want to a little, so that only left one choice. He bent low over Cody's prone body and picked him up and slung him over his shoulder with an _oof_. He knocked the goofy hat off Cody's head and decided that he looked enough like a passed out pirate to get back to the _Queen Carey's Revenge_ without being questioned.

Zack walked through the people on the docks without sparing anyone a glance. He was intent on getting his brother back to the boat before he woke up and caused any trouble. "Hopkins," he called out as he neared his ship's berth, "get everyone back on board in the next ten minutes or else they will be staying here a lot longer than they intended."

"Captain Sparrow?"

"We need to leave, Hopkins."

"What about the supplies?"

"There are other ports in the sea, Hopkins. We'll resupply from one of them." He shifted Cody's weight a bit.

"Who's that?" Hopkins asked, pointing to the body Zack had thrown over his shoulder.

"This isn't the time for playing twenty questions. Get the men back on board, Hopkins!"

"Yes sir, Captain Sparrow."


End file.
